Severe Weather

Casino: No major problems to report for soft open

The new Cincinnati casino had a test run before next week’s grand opening.

The new $400 million Horseshoe Casino Cincinnati invited 15,000 VIP guests Wednesday night for a soft opening. The eight-hour dry run tested everything from parking procedures to food service, security and game tables.

The Ohio Casino Control Commission wants to make sure everything is set to run smoothly before the grand opening March 4.

Horseshoe Casino Cincinnati is home to 2,000 slot machines, 87 game tables, private player rooms, restaurants and a gift shop.

The new 2,500-vehicle casino parking garage filled up fast.

“It was packed. They were turning people away," Matt Murphy said.

Some guests resorted to on-street parking.

“We saw on Facebook that a lot of people were complaining about the parking arrangements so we just kind of took the first thing we saw open right around the corner,” Michael Kayef said.

Local towing companies were ready to take away cars parked illegally.

“(The) biggest recommendation we can give people coming down to park is, if it doesn't look right and you're not paying to park there, it’s probably wrong," Bill Stumpf of At Your Service Towing said.

Still, the casino staff does not anticipate parking to be a problem on average nights.

“This is a little like church on Christmas day. Lots and lots and lots of people here. But on a steady basis we expect we'll have plenty of parking," Casino spokesperson Jennifer Kulczycki said.

Hillary Clinton's office said "nothing nefarious was at play" when the former secretary of state used her personal email address, rather than one provided by the State Department, during her four years as America's top diplomat.